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Better Breathing Workshops

feldemoves breath work, breathing, Uncategorized, Workshops June 5, 2024 Leave a reply

All Workshops at:
The Hobart Breathing Space
13b Goulburn St, Hobart

What is Better Breathing? Pilates & Feldenkrais
Sunday, June 30th 1-5

Better Breathing & Emotion -Martial Arts & Feldenkrais
Sunday, July 28th 1-5

Better Breathing & Voice: Alexander Technique & Feldenkrais
Sunday, September 1st 1-5pm

Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy & Feldenkrais
Sunday, September 29th 1-5pm

Better Breathing

The `Better Breathing’ workshops arose from curiosity about how different disciplines approach this huge topic. There will be practical lessons about breathing from the perspectives of Pilates, Martial Arts, Alexander Technique, Physiotherapy, and the Feldenkrais Method, as well as science, discussion and feedback.

Joanna and Nicole are Feldenkrais practitioners, and will contribute to each of the workshops alongside one of the other 4 disciplines.

We all breathe. Stopping breathing means dying. We are all good enough at it, but many of us have experiences which indicate that we could do it “better”. Including sensations of shortness of breath, inability to take a full breath, rapid breathing, anxiety, tight throat, jaw, shoulders, chest and abdomen, panic attacks, asthma, sighing and throat clearing.

Many of us have poor posture, as if we are still hunched over a screen when we are standing, walking, interacting with friends and with the outside world. Poor posture means poor breathing, and there are many consequences.

Our emotional lives are played out in our breathing. We change the way we feel when we change our breathing pattern- or is it a change in breathing which changes the way we feel?

There are so many instructions – and no one thing which suits everyone all the time. These workshops are an offer of opportunities to glimpse different perspectives on breathing. The Feldenkrais contribution includes coming home to the reality we live with every day – our own body-mind system. How does this happen?

The Feldenkrais Method develops our awareness of what we are doing. As a result, we develop choice. These workshops will focus on how and where we breathe in our bodies. We will visit the science behind the recommendations. We will play with movements and discover what works for us. As children, play was our main learning tool. For adults, play is still fun and still effective. We learn best with a smile on our faces and in our hearts.

Dr Moshe Feldenkrais, 1904 – 1984, was a physicist, engineer, soccer player, author, and martial artist. His self-observation after a knee injury led eventually to the skills of self-observation and learning which Feldenkrais Practitioners all work with and continue to develop today.

Joanna de Burgh completed the first Professional Feldenkrais Training in Australia in 1990. The Feldenkrais Method continues to delight and inform her in daily life and in leading Awareness Through Movement classes. She has retired from her day job as a GP. It is exciting that there is so much science now backing up the observations of Dr Moshe Feldenkrais.

Nicole Harstead is a Movement Educator of over 20 years. She taught dance in the Senior Secondary System and as a Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner she loves assisting people to find more freedom and joy in their movement. She works with individuals and groups.

What is Better Breathing? Pilates & Feldenkrais
Sunday, June 30th 1-5

In the first Better Breathing workshop Joanna and Nicole will guide you in learning to breathe in different ways. What is the science of good breathing? What are the mechanics of breathing?

Pilates “Inhale, exhale” – beyond the core. 

A key focus of the Pilates method is strengthening the body’s trunk musculature or ‘core’. To achieve this effectively we engage the abdominal muscles, lower back muscles, glutes, and pelvic floor. Since some core muscles are also involved in breathing, including the diaphragm, effective strength training must incorporate breath work. Breath and core strength are both parallel concepts and intertwined. Just as core musculature can work both passively and actively in the body, the breath can also work passively or as a focused active movement.  In this workshop we will guide participants through Pilates repertoire and breathing exercises which will enhance the use of both concepts individually, and then collectively with breath as a key foundation for effective core strength.

Peter Eastment is a Pilates instructor who is passionate about improving and supporting movement and stability through the use of Pilates, breathing and other similar techniques. In Peter’s practice he looks at the different elements that affect movement such as lifestyle training, and develops a plan based on a holistic approach. Peter is a Diploma Qualified Pilates Instructor, and certified Personal Trainer and has worked as a rehab trainer with clients from diverse backgrounds.

Jo Behrens is an experienced and warm Pilates instructor who is well known for her precise instruction and flowing choreography. Jo works closely with Flex Health Therapy physiotherapists to devise programs that target people’s specific needs. When she’s not at Flex you’ll find her in her teacher training role at Inspired Academy, training others to become Pilates instructors. Jo has a particular interest in helping people to age well. She is an advocate of functional, intelligent movement for all bodies, and builds stability and confidence in her clients regardless of their age, fitness or ability level. 

Better Breathing & Emotion -Martial Arts & Feldenkrais
Sunday, July 28th 1-5

 In the second workshop Joanna and Nicole will explore the connection between breathing and our emotional states.

Martial Arts

My experience has shown me how central understanding the breath is to the practice of martial arts, both in terms of physical conditioning but also in generation of power in technique. An effective martial artist knows how to breath well, how to breath efficiently, how to calm their breath and how to affect the breath of opponents. Understanding the anatomy and the rhythm of breathing, will help to develop depth in your breath which is essential to nourish your body. I will be guiding participants through exercises that are used in Martial Arts to improve breathing.

Gerry Young is a Martial Artist and Instructor with Black Belts in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Hapkido. He has had extensive experience in training, competition, coaching, refereeing as well as real world application of martial arts over the last 25 years.

Better Breathing & Voice: Alexander Technique & Feldenkrais
Sunday, September 1st 1-5pm

 In this third workshop Nicole and Joanna will highlight the inter-relationships between breathing, posture, and the pelvic floor.

Alexander Technique

We will look at the principals of the Alexander Technique specifically in relation to breath and voice. To have a clear free resonant voice we need to be grounded, balanced over our feet, have no unnecessary tension in our neck and shoulders, and allow our breath to be free. Many of us teach, run workshops, or have to speak in public. Those you are wishing to connect with will feel safe, and truly hear what you are saying if your breath and voice are free of tension and supported by your whole body.

Penny McDonald has been teaching the Alexander Technique since 1996. She has a private practice in lutruwita/Tasmania and has taught at many music and acting schools. She also trains future teachers of the Alexander Technique

Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy & Feldenkrais
Sunday, September 29th 1-5pm

In this final workshop, Nicole and Joanna will look at how breathing is linked to the outside world, creativity, flow, and curiosity. Joanna will address how we can best nourish our breathing so it can best nourish us.

Physiotherapy

Breathing is intimately related to movement – it affects posture, stability and muscle function. In this session, you will learn about the influence of breathing on movement, and how moving beautifully is not just about the body. It will also include some practical concepts for you to explore.

Hester Laughlin has studied extensively to address movement dysfunctions, helping people optimise movement, regain function and confidence, and alleviate pain. I work holistically with people from all walks of life from the young to those with advanced life experience, and the elite sportsperson to the mobility-challenged.

The Dirty Hand Print

feldemoves Movement through awareness, Uncategorized December 17, 2018 Leave a reply

All dancers know the feeling of freedom, when you confidently dance the steps embedded in your muscle memory, enjoying the music and the feeling of being in present moment. When I was a bit older, I did improvisational dance, where there are no memorised steps. I was stunned by the multitude of choices that presented themselves in any given moment. It took a great deal of courage to trust my chosen movement decisions and responses in a performance setting.

It was interesting to see how this improvisation experience used to flow into my everyday life. Improvisation reminded me that in any given moment in our lives there are different ways that we can move or act. It highlighted to me that we must habitually act throughout much of our life, forgetting about all the choices that we have. We might get out of our car in the same sequence. Or our manner of walking may not change, whether we are moving on sand or concrete.

My husband is a builder, and often he comes home filthy. On our tiled bathroom wall, we both noticed a dirty handprint that had been built up over time. I asked him is that where you lean when you are removing your clothes for your shower after work? He said yes. What’s curious is the handprint built up in the same spot.

It’s efficient to have habits, we can’t be constantly checking our every move. But overtime when these habits become repetitive our bodies can become tired and worn from being held in similar positions and moving in a limited range.

Simply having the awareness that we are making a choice, in each moment, and don’t always have to do things the same way is enough to provide a sense of freedom.

Moshe Feldenkrais said, “When you know what you are doing, you can do what you want.”

Luckily Feldenkrais is not as confronting as improvisational dance. In my first Feldenkrais workshop, it felt like I was being handed the possibility to move in ways I had never done before. As a person who had done many different types of dance and movement, it felt like a rare gift.

In an `Awareness through movement’ lesson you are safely guided to experience a range of movement options. Feldenkrais gives you a map of uncharted territory. It’s a map of you. It’s the ultimate adventure to explore places you have never been before. Like any travel, it wakes you up, makes you feel different, and afterwards you can experience the world differently.

If you are curious and like an adventure with an internal feeling of freedom, then learning about a new range of movement options through the Feldenkrais Method can be very rewarding.